Six Survival Tips When Going Cross Country with Kids

Cross country car
journeys can stretch over several hours. When you have tired and argumentative
kids in the car with you, those hours might seem like days. These five superb
tips for going cross country with the kids will make every journey go
smoothly.

1. Use
Audiobooks to keep everyone amused

Keeping your kids enthralled in a story for a
couple of hours is a great way to get a large leg of your journey completed
without any fuss. Listening to music can be good, too, but whereas your kids
might be tempted to sing along raucously to music, a thrilling audiobook
requires total silence from its listeners. Bliss.

2. Make
the journey fun

If you are clearly dreading the journey and see
it as a boring chore to do before you can arrive at your destination, your kids
will pick up on that. Instead, make the journey fun by getting excited about
landmarks that you will see on the way and encouraging your kids to take photos,
and enjoy the passing scenery. Get them bit by the travel bug.

3. Get out
of the car every couple of hours

Stopping for a picnic or to explore a beautiful
little town on the way is such a wonderful strategy to break up a journey. You
may feel the urge to reach your destination and try to rush as long as your gas
can take you. Nevertheless, ensuring that everyone gets out of the car and
stretches their legs will make the journey much more enjoyable.

4. Bring
snacks

Every parent knows that one of the main reasons
that kids get cranky is because they are hungry. Keeping your car well-stocked
with their favorite snacks will make the journey much more of an adventure.
Stopping off somewhere nice for lunch is also a great idea. Try some food that
you never could enjoy at home, and your kids will see the value in taking a
long journey.

5. Be
flexible

As all parents are
well aware, implementing a rigid schedule when you have kids tends to be
troublesome as they would never understand its importance. When things do not
go as planned, everyone gets stressed. Avoid this issue by keeping your
schedule flexible. Rather than saying, for instance, 'we must be at point X in
our journey by 3pm today', relax a little. Have a
contingency plan. If you do not make as much headway as you thought you would
on the first day of your trip, for instance, what's the harm in booking a motel
or going slightly off course so that everyone can stay in one of your friends'
or family members' houses for the night? Even better, pass a night or two at a
rental property. You can easily find the best condos for rent at property finders
such as Zipmatch on your smartphone by checking out their overall ranking
scores.